Weekend Sports Adventure in South Florida

Living in Florida for about 5 years now, we have been able to explore all that this state has to offer! We are lucky that South Florida, especially, has unlimited fun options for weekend trips, especially for the sports lovers! With that in mind, we decided to pack in some action and take a road trip to enjoy some of our favorite sports venues in the sunshine state.

The journey is as important as the destination for us; so riding in style during a road trip is a must! For this particular adventure we had a very reliable and fun teammate, the Mazda 3. The MAZDA 3 is a very well rounded player, on offense: its SKYACTIV®-G1 2.5L DOHC 4-cylinder with VVT and the SKYACTIV®-DRIVE1 6-speed automatic transmission with manual-shift and Sport mode gives you enough power to dominate the road but the fuel efficiency to last the whole game. On defense the i-ACTIVSENSE® Safety Package brings all the security your team needs for the road. The Mazda 3 comes equipped with lane-keep assist, Mazda Radar Cruise Control, Smart Brake support and a lot other features that will help you keep your head in the game even if you have to go into overtime.

We took to the road with our squad ready for our first destination, Roger Dean Stadium, home of the Miami Marlins and St Louis Cardinals spring training games in Jupiter, Florida. We are loyal Cards fans, but since we live in Miami there are very few opportunities to cheer on our team in person. Built in 1998, The Roger Dean Stadium is a beautiful 6,871-seat stadium with luxury skybox seating, 2 levels of permanent seating and delicious food and drink in their concessions. We highly recommend the St. Louis bacon wrapped hotdog, but make sure you are hungry before you order it. Unfortunately it wasn’t the best day for the cards, but the season is long and we trust our team. The truth is that we had a lot of fun and we want to thank Roger Dean stadium and its entire amazing staff for having us! It was time to regroup, and after a quick huddle we were on the road again.

Our next destination was the Daytona International Speedway, one of the most important circuits in the U.S. and the home of the most prestigious race in America. The 181.4 mi trip was delightful thanks to the Mazda 3 and all its “Swag.” Our companion was nothing but fun with its 7 inch full color touch screen display, 9 speaker surround sound Bose® system and the MAZDA CONNECT™ Infotainment System with Pandora and Stitcher radio integration and of course Bluetooth®6 hands-free phone and audio streaming capability so you can sit back, relax and enjoy.

We had a quick pit stop in Cocoa Beach for the night and got ready for the Daytona 500. The Great American Race is like no other sporting event in the country. Those lucky enough to have a “hot pass” as they call it, really get to be close to their idols, the cars and the track. The Daytona 500 could be described as a 12-hour massive race party. The adrenaline rush of 40+ massive speed machines flying through the track at almost 200 mph will engage even those who claim to be not too keen on racing. Being able to live such an important event up close is really amazing, but it is even better when you can you can enjoy it with your team!

Tell us what you think, and let us know what are some of your favorite sports adventure in Florida!

After living in Miami for about 5 years and accepting a constant stream of out-of-town visitors, I have gotten very good at giving “Welcome to the 305” tours. I can no longer count on one hand how many times I’ve helped guests put together solid agendas for their trips, to make sure they see the best that Miami has to offer.

So to put this research to good use, I decided to finally write down these recommendations for all the internet to enjoy. Now that I think about it, it might also save me time later on when I have future friends coming to visit – now I can just share a link!

So, if you ask me what I would do in Miami over a long weekend, here are my recommendations for how to see the Best of Miami in 3 Days. In the comments, please also add in your ideas of what else could be included in the list.

How to see the Best of Miami in 3 Days:

Day 1:

City Sightseeing Bus Tour: While a tour bus might not seem like the most “authentic” experience in Miami, I always recommend it to my out of town guests as a great intro to the city. The City Sightseeing bus picks up in a ton of locations and will take you around town to see all the highlights of the city. It’s a great way to get your bearings of the layout of the town, which is also helpful when you are driving around later! Add to that the awesome guides, who give fun tidbits about the city and it makes for an awesome first day!I recommend that you start on the first bus of the day, so you can hop off around lunch for some Cuban food and still make it through all of the loops in time for dinner!

Peruvian Dinner at Lima in the Atton: I always recommend exploring Brickell in the evening since the day-time business traffic is a major pain. Most of my out-of-town guests have never had Peruvian before, so I always add it to the list and this new restaurant will defintely impress! They offer an amazing menu of Peruvian-infusion dishes and a spectacular list of Chilean wines – talk about an awesome first night in Miami!

Drinks and Dancing at Ball & Chain: To dance off some of those calories from dinner and get a truly authentic night out in Little Havana, I recommend you head down the road to Ball & Chain on Calle Ocho. They have slightly different themes and drink specials each night of the week, but I can vouch for the fact that you will have an amazing time! I’ve gone for ladies night, karaoke, salsa lessons…and I’ve always had such a fun experience. If you are celebrating something special (even if its just your trip!), you should defintely order the Celebration Pineapple. Do it, you will be happy you did!

Day 2:

Shopping, Bus Tour Part 2 or Beach Day: I’m not going to lie, the weather in Miami can be VERY unpredictable. For that reason, I always try and give some flexible options during the day in case we need a rain plan.

Shopping: Miami is known for its amazing shopping! There are more malls than I can even name, so in case of rain, you can always head to your closest mall and do some major retail therapy! I recommend The Falls and Dolphin Mall.

Bus Tour Part 2: If you aren’t sure about the weather, you can always opt for a 2nd day of the City Sightseeing bus tour (they sell the tickets with a 2-day option) so you can finish any of the routes you didn’t get to enjoy on day 1. They offer free ponchos in case it does start to rain and you can head downstairs to the covered portion while still getting to see the city.

Beach Day: If you know the weather will be nice, head out to enjoy what Miami is best known for – our beaches! If you want the typical Miami experience, just ask your Uber driver to take you to South Beach, but if you want something more relaxed, then I recommend that you head to Key Biscayne. Make sure to pack plenty of water and sunscreen!

Barton G: In my opinion, this is THE Miami interactive dining experience. I’m not exaggerating when I say this will be a truly unforgettable evening and you will probably fill up all the memory you have left on your phone with all the photos you will be taking at Barton G. So as you are planning for your trip, make sure you keep things in mind:

Make reservations in advance: Make sure you give them a call or visit OpenTable to make a reservation for your party!

Come hungry: In order to get the full experience, you need to try all 3 courses: appetizers, entree, and dessert! I promise you will regret it if you don’t save room for dessert at the end of the meal, it is defintely my favor!

Just for drinks too: Even if you just want to swing by for drinks (which are also photo-worthy!), Barton G has a fabulous bar that usually has some space if you want to sit and enjoy conversation and cocktails.

Barú Brickell: After living in Miami for over 5 years and exploring my fair share of bars/dance clubs, I can say with total confidence that Barú Latin is a “must-go” place for a night of dancing and latin music. It is a perfect representation of the diverse and colorful nightlife in Miami. I have plenty more nice things to say about this place, which you can read about HERE.

Day 3:

Visit the Vizcaya or Beach Day: Again, providing a few options that could be moved around depending on the day (or of the hour, since our weather changes insanely fast).

Visit the Vizcaya: Created as James Deering’s subtropical winter home in the 1910s, the Vizcaya is now a National Historic Landmark and I will be a major highlight to your trip! The views of the water are spectacular and you can explore both inside the home as well as outside in the gardens.

Beach Day: See what I wrote above, its the same 🙂

Sunset Boat Ride with Tropical Sailing: In my humble opinion, this is THE best way to end on the last night of your visit to Miami. However, you really should book this excursion based on which night you think will have the least chance of rain – take whatever night you can get, it’s that good! The cruise leaves from Bayside Marketplace (which is also a great place to pick up any souvenirs) and takes you on a lovely ride through the bay to watch the sunset, before returning to the sparkling lights of the city. Get your camera ready, because the photo ops are endless!

Tapas at Happy Wine: When you get off the boat ride around 8PM, I suggest you head over to Happy Wine for some tasty tapas and lovely wine to absorb everything you’ve seen and done in Miami during your trip! The location in Coconut Grove is my go-to, but you can also find a Happy Wine in Calle Ocho – both are fantastic! This restaurant is always a favorite of my out-of-town guests because it combines a relaxed environment with delectable food and they always like picking out the wine from the racks on the wall! Extra trip: When you are planning out your trip, keep in mind that on most weeks, that have live music from Wednesday-Saturday nights!

While this might sound like a lot, you really do need to try and pack your days in order to even scrape the surface of all that Miami has to offer. Obviously, each person might have different preferences on what type of adventures they like to take, but hopefully this list will give you a nice starting point as you are making your plans!

Always happy to take other recommendations, so please add them in the comments below. Gracias!

After living in Miami for over 5 years and exploring my fair share of bars/dance clubs, I can say with total confidence that Barú Latin is a “must-go” place for a night of dancing and latin music. I can’t even express my panic when the location in Brickell was closed for a few months, before it re-opened in the heart of Mary Brickell village – and I’m happy to report that this new location only adds to the experience!

Since Barú has been my go-to place for several years now, I’m going to break down for you the 5 reasons why you should check it out:

Amazing Ambiance: For me, the outdoor sitting area is the main attraction and the reason I love a night out at Barú! Even though Miami’s hot weather can be pretty gruesome, Barú has seemed to find a way to keep the air moving in their patio, so it really doesn’t feel that hot (well, except if you are breaking it down on the dance floor all night, that’s on you!). Looking around you can see that both tourists and locals enjoy being outside and escaping the usual “Miami club scene” with a more relaxed setting.

Buena Música: A live DJ offers a mix of salsa, merengue, bachata and vallenato classics, top 40 both in English and Spanish as well as hip hop – add to that the occasional electronic track, and that means no matter what your party style is, Baru Latin Bar has you covered! Make sure to check their Instagram because they have special events and guests throughout the week.

Drink Specials: While you are on their Instagram page, make sure you also check out their drinks specials, which are actually especially great during week days, including a daily happy hour with half priced drinks. Bottle services are definitely amongst the most affordable in Miami and just like with the rest of the drinks’ menu, they have specials during the week so you can party like a rock star.

Awesome for Groups: From past experience, Barú is also a great place to plan your next celebration. They are super easy to coordinate with and are happy to accommodate groups…like with most places, just make sure to plan your reservation in advance and they will take care of the rest!

No Cover before midnight: I pretty much refuse to go anywhere with a cover, so I love that Barú offers no cover before midnight for everybody, unless they have a special event. You should note that after 12:00 am there’s a $20 cover for the guys.

So if you are looking for your next favorite hot spot as a local, or a visitor trying to get a real “Miami” experience – you should defintely check out Barú in Brickell. And hey, you never know, you might run into my breaking it down on the dance floor!

As Miami locals we think 3p is cafecito time (actually 3:05p give that 305 is our area code!). We get cafecito at random corners on 8th street or Lincoln Road, pay $1 and call it a day. This weekend, we did something a little bit different. We had afternoon tea at the Biltmore Hotel.

Schultze and Weaver, the architects of other hotels in the Biltmore chain (as well as New York’s Grand Central Terminal and Miami’s Freedom Tower), designed the hotel to have the most modern of conveniences while fitting in a playful Mediterranean Beaux Arts style.

The Biltmore Hotel is a “luxury resort destination with an award-wining spa.” It sounds incredibly fancy. As it should. Because that’s exactly the Biltmore. As we sat down at 3:15pm to have petite fours and loose leaf tea in real China, we saw three brides and their respective bridal parties, a few photographers, and the best of Miami’s society pages – really cute eight-year olds dressed in ballerina outfits extremely excited about the fact that the harp music was indeed from Beauty and the Beast (okay, I was really excited too, but let’s keep that between us).

Sweet on the top and savory on the bottom! Too bad this is not an every day treat! Photo: 35westdesign.com

We loved the China and ritual of the afternoon tea. Dan was very skeptical at first, but eventually… he was a total pro about it!

The full tea service is $34.5 per person, and it includes a pretty generous three-tier tower of sweet and savory treats (the raspberry macarons were our favorite, followed by the flavored scones), plus three hot water refills of your own fancy hot tea pot. You can choose from white teas, black teas, and herbal teas, which is pretty hard, as all of them were pretty delicious. However, the tea service and the caring and smiling staff were actually not my favorite part of my first ever afternoon tea experience. The Biltmore Hotel was.

Spanish painted tiles are a used across the whole property, staying true to the original Beaux Arts inspiration.

The arch hallways and Arabian Nights inspired outdoor pendants are almost magical, and immediately pull you towards another time and place. Photo: 35westdesign.com

The Biltmore Hotel was designed by Schultze and Weaver and was built in 1926 by John McEntee Bowman and George Merrick as part of the Biltmore Hotel chain. When completed it became the tallest building in Florida at 315 feet holding the record until 1928 when the Dade County Courthouse was built. The Biltmore actually served as a hospital during World War II and as a VA Hospital and campus of the University of Miami medical school until 1968. In 1966, it was designated as a National Historic Landmark. The hotel was used for a setting for the movie Bad Boys, as well as TV shows such as CSI: Miami, and Miami Vice.

And, my total favorite part? Some said this hotel is actually HAUNTED, most often by the spirit of Thomas Walsh, or Thomas “Fatty” Walsh. He was a New York mobster who was killed at the Biltmore on March 4th, 1929 during a gambling dispute. Often, you hear Miami locals talk about how his ghost haunts the hotel elevator, which doors have been seen opening and closing and lights blinking on and off. The elevator usually stops and opens on the 13th floor, where Thomas Walsh was killed…oh my.

I came for the petit fours, and got spooked out! Just kidding. We really enjoyed walking around and marveling at the amazing decor and furnishings full of history and stories.

Fast-forward a few years later, and we are listening to classical music and smearing strawberry jam on buttery scones, and talking about the hotel’s amazing decor!

Now, this is a floor lamp worth blogging about…

In one of the many hallways, chairs’ arm rests and legs resemble birds and other animals with detailed wood carvings, typical of the late Gothic movement.

Dan eventually warmed up about the idea of doing afternoon tea. Outside, the views of the courtyard and perfectly manicured golf course were picture perfect.